Ha oh wow, for herbals which I don’t drink very often I do use a lot more tea than my default measuring amount like you mentioned. It also helps that 90% of herbals can be steeped for as long as you want, especially if you’re cold steeping. But with some of my favorites like the Earl Grey White, any more than a teaspoon per 8oz can make it unbearably strong. Of course all of our taste buds are different.

I have a few different ‘perfect’ tea spoons, and they’re 1.5 tsp (including the teavana one, which I’ve actually measured… yes, I’m that kind of geek). Although, we have an awesome set that has a 1 ptsp, 2 ptsp, and 4 ptsp. We got it from… culinary teas, I think?

Thats what I’ve always assumed too. I don’t read “Cup” as a measurement of 8 oz, but rather as a cup of tea, which I have always considered to be 6 oz. That being said, the amount of tea to use really depends on the shape of a tea. A finely cut tea only really needs 1 tsp, but a long or fluffy tea could use as many as 3 tsp. If you want to get technical measure in grams rather than tsp.

I do it the same way as you Anny, according to my own usual preference first and rarely make it so far as to actually try and follow instructions. I know the strength I tend to prefer and it may not be the same strength as whoever wrote the instructions prefer. Some teas really change character if one finds them too strong or too weak.

I like to use a large amount of leaf and steep for a very short amount of time. Usually that menas brewing with a gaiwan or yixing or some such, but if I’m making a big mug or pot, I’ll use the same principles. So if I’m making a four-mug teapot of tea, I’ll use two tablespoons at least, then steep for 30 to 40 seconds. This gives me more of a gong-fu flavor, and lets me steep the leaves many many times to see how the flavor changes. Or I’ll use a tablespoon or two in a brew basket, (ie: half the brew basket or so), stick that in a mug, and pour the boiling water in. Then I’ll take the basket out after a second or two. I’ll increase the steep time by a few seconds each steeping (and a few more seconds each time.. kind of exponentially increasing).

But yes- as those before me have said: it depends on the tea! That’s one reason I like this semi-gongfu method.. it allows me to adjust. If I brewed too long or too short (or too much leaf or too little) on the first steeping, I can change and correct for the second.. or third.. or fourth… or 17th.. which also gives me flexibility for changing moods from day to day, or throughout a day.

What Spoonvonstup said. It depends on how long your steeping time is and which tea you are brewing. You can’t even always make generalisations within just one type either, like all black tea for X time and all green tea for Y time.

But it also depends on how strong you like your tea. If you like a very strong cup it would be more advisable to use more leaf instead of a longer steep, because that way you get a strong cup of tea that doesn’t get bitter. Some people prefer a stronger cup, some people prefer a weaker cup and leaf to water ratio is adjusted accordingly.

Michelle is right, it depends on the type of tea. For Japanese green teas, the standard is more or less like this:
Sencha, 1 tsp per cup, 2 oz
Gyokuro, 1 tsp per cup, 3/4 oz
You need small cups for Gyokuro!

I generally use 1 gram per 100 milliliters. Unless I was working with my gaiwan and then it really depends on the tea and probably my mood a bit. But for gringo, that ratio above seems to do well for me. :D